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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. stock — goods
  3. scale — size or range
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. cell — a phone
  9. last — final
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. field — for sport
  15. field — a subject
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. stock — shares
  18. cell — in biology
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. scale — in music
  21. last — to go on
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. field — farmland
  24. last — finally

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com